Mayor Eric Adams Wiki – Mayor Eric Adams Bio
Mayor Adams kicked off his important summit conference on Saturday with the goal of addressing the Big Apple’s growing crime problem; however, the subject of bail reform never came up, the sources said.
Adams met for about four hours behind closed doors at Gracie Mansion with district attorneys, other elected officials, defense attorneys, police officers and other key stakeholders for Day 1 of a two-day weekend summit that some critics have criticized. as a “waste of time”. ”
Most participants did not talk to reporters as they went back and forth about the specifics of what was on the agenda, but some experts confirmed that the issue of reforming bail laws was off the table on Day 1, at despite the fact that Adams previously promised that it would not be so. .
The participants tried to paint a rosy picture of the summit.
“I don’t want to talk about what happened there, but in terms of crime… I think everyone is realizing that the police alone can’t solve this… and one of the things that I hope will come out of this is getting some investment. on some of the other things that will help us,” left-handed public defender Jumaane Williams said.
Others in attendance included Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark, Corrections Commissioner Louis Molina and Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz.
Crime Cases
Before entering, Clark blamed his inability to get criminal cases through the system on “loss of attorneys” in his office and new discovery laws that make it more tedious for his staff to hand over evidence to defense attorneys. .
“Our attorneys feel like paper smugglers now,” Clark said. “They’re not really focusing on the actual cases. They are more focused on getting the paperwork out and not having a piece of paper can get a case dismissed. That jeopardizes your license. That puts the cases in jeopardy. And that endangers public safety.”
Clark said he didn’t know if bail reform would be discussed over the weekend. But civil rights attorney and guest Norman Siegel told The Post on Friday that bail reform, which critics say has fueled crime and recidivism, would not be on the agenda all weekend.
Siegel, a longtime former executive director of the New York Civil Liberties Union, said the panels would address issues including “prosecutors not getting proof [evidence] from defendants in a timely manner” and whether to hire more people. for make faster the process.
Former New York Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik criticized the sessions as a “waste of time”.
“No city leader knows more about reducing crime than the #NYPD!” he tweeted. “Mayor: recruit/hire more, and take the handcuffs off the cops. Governor [Hochul]: Repeal bail reform and fire leftist red district attorneys.
The city’s five district attorneys, which also include Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez, were expected to be among the summit’s participants, according to a list released by the City hall.
Bragg has faced a storm of criticism, and an exodus of veteran prosecutors, since he imposed a series of soft policies on crime after he took office on Jan. 1.
In 2019, Gonzalez also announced a soft plan on crime called “Justice 2020,” but earlier this year he called for “tweaks” to the 2019 bail reform law, which critics including the New York Police Department , have been blamed for fueling crime and recidivism.
Both State Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D-Yonkers) and Assembly Leader Carl Heastie (D-The Bronx), who passed bail reform and resisted efforts to reverse it, they will send their legal advisers to represent them at the summit.
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